I have a packard bell desktop, but when installing any software an error saying I should 'use packard bell companion to install' appears,preventing me installing software.I cannot find this program on the computer,may even have deleted at some point.Any suggestions?
regards numptie.

Have down loaded Microsoft Installer Cleanup and the list of programs shown all seem important to my computers well being,though there are some that are just numbers or jumble that means nothing to me but I'm afraid to make permanent changes from fear of doing more damage/hassle,although packard bell companion was listed! Should I remove this ?As I thought I was trying to install this program to help download.Thanks for taking a look at my problem JonVBFL, but having been bitten before I'm afraid to make permanant changes to my computer on my decision making.

regards numptie.

p.s. A friend has suggested a system recovery?

How would I do this and what are the consiquences?Have down loaded Microsoft Installer Cleanup and the list of programs shown all seem important to my computers well being,though there are some that are just numbers or jumble that means nothing to me but I'm afraid to make permanent changes from fear of doing more damage/hassle,although packard bell companion was listed! Should I remove this ?As I thought I was trying to install this program to help download.Thanks for taking a look at my problem JonVBFL, but having been bitten before I'm afraid to make permanant changes to my computer on my decision making.
regards numptie.
p.s. A friend has suggested a system recovery?
How would I do this and what are the consiquences?

1 Suggested Answer

Hi,
a 6ya expert can help you resolve that issue over the phone in a minute or two.
Best thing about this new service is that you are never placed on hold and get to talk to real repairmen in the US.
the service is completely free and covers almost anything you can think of.(from cars to computers, handyman, and even drones)
click here to download the app (for users in the US for now) and get all the help you need.Goodluck!

Tell us some more! Your answer needs to include more details to help people.You can't post answers that contain an email address.Please enter a valid email address.The email address entered is already associated to an account.Login to postPlease use English characters only.

Packard Bell is a computer manufacturer, now owned by Acer. Restoring your computer will erase the hard drive and install a fresh copy of Microsoft Windows. This is beneficial if the Packard Bell is showing its age and running extremely slow or has been hit with an incurable virus infection. Before attempting to restore the system, be sure to back up any data you wish to save.

1.Insert the Windows Setup CD/DVD into the computer's optical drive. The disc will have been included with the Packard Bell computer.

2.Restart the computer with the disc inserted. A black screen will appear when the disc is detected, displaying "Press any key to boot from CD or DVD..." Press any key on the keyboard to launch the Windows installer. The "Install Windows" screen will appear.

3.Click "Next."

4.Select "I accept the license terms" and click "Next."

5.Click "Custom" when asked what type of installation you'd like. The other option is "Upgrade," but in order to restore your Packard Bell system to its factory settings, you must reformat the hard drive.

6.Click "Drive Options" when asked where to install Windows. Select the C: drive and click "Erase." Select the unallocated space after it has been erased, and click "Format." Format the space using the "NTFS" file system.

7.Click "Next" and Windows will begin reinstalling on the Packard Bell's hard drive. The system will reboot when finished and launch into your newly restored Packard Bell.

Using a button or key combination (e.g. <Fn> + <F1>) enables and disables the WiFi functionality.Please note that on selected models this functionality requires specific software; this will be pre-installed with the standard Packard Bell software bundle.

I'm assuming you bought this used. It sounds like the computer either didn't have the operating installed properly, the hard drive used to be in another computer and just dropped into this computer without re-installing the operating system.... or most likely that it has a virus.

Your best option in any of these cases is to do a clean install of your operating system. If you were not given a recovery disc you will unfortunately need to purchase Windows.

"Step 4 - Re-installing your software
Call the help desk and ask them to guide you through the
ExtHS process.
Please have your Recovery CDs to hand when you call
the Easy Repair line.

Once you have completed the ExtHS process you will
need to re-install Windows and the other software supplied
with your Packard Bell computer. To do this follow the
steps below:
1. Disconnect all peripheral devices (web cam, printer,
scanner, broadband modem etc.).
2. Insert the Packard Bell Master CD 1 / DVD in the top
CD / DVD drive and restart your computer.
3. The CD will load and display the following message:
Please refer to the section headed Packard Bell
Recovery Program in your user’s guide for instructions
on this utility. Press OK if you want to continue
or Cancel to return to DOS.
4. Press the letter O on your keyboard to continue.
5. You will see a menu with options. Please select option 1
“Standard System Restore” by pressing the 1 key on
your keyboard.
6. A warning message about data loss will be displayed.
Press the letter O to continue.
7. The process will take around 40 minutes. Once this is
done you will need to restart your PC. Remove the CDs
and store them in a safe place.
8. If there was a Software Library DVD supplied with your
PC you can use this to install the extra software that was
supplied with your computer. Insert this into the drive
and follow the onscreen instructions.
9. Finally, you will need to install any additional devices
(web cam, printer, etc.) and software by following the
instructions supplied with them."